Chemical spill in W.V. not expected to affect Ohio

2:38 PM,
Jan. 11, 2014

People wait in line for water from a 7,500 gallon tanker truck brought in from Washington, Pa., on Friday at Riverside High School near Charleston, W.Va. A chemical spill left the water for 300,000 people in and around West Virginia's capital city stained blue-green and smelling like licorice, with officials saying Friday it was unclear when it might be safe again for even mundane activities like showers and laundry.

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A chemical spill in a West Virginia river has left hundreds of thousands of people in and around the state's capital city of Charleston without clean water, but it is not expected to cause a problem here, according to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.

"We aren't really expecting a concern here in Ohio due to the distance and the dilution that will occur," said Carol Hester, spokeswoman with the Ohio EPA. "We are keeping an eye on it, but we are not expecting a concern in Ohio."

On why it will it will be too diluted to cause an issue here, Hester said, "because of the volume it will be mixing ...